Wayne Lizer

1941 - 2019

Wayne Harlan Lizer
April 24, 1941 - March 21, 2019
Wayne Harlan Lizer passed away peacefully March 21, 2019, at HopeWest, with pancreatic cancer.
Wayne was born on April 24, 1941, in Santa Fe, NM, the son of Harlan Delos Lizer and Nellie Burt Lizer. He graduated from Santa Fe High School, then attended Highlands University, where he was a member of the traveling choir and later transferred to New Mexico State University, where he earned his BS Degree in Civil Engineering. He married Sherrill Virginia Dukeminier, August 8, 1964, in Santa Fe and was married for 54 years. They had two sons, Perry and Patrick, in Las Cruces, NM.
During his college years, he worked for engineering firms and on land survey crews and was able to become a Professional Land Surveyor. He was a Registered Professional Civil Engineer and Land Surveyor in Colorado and New Mexico. He was a long-time member of the Western Colorado Land Surveyors Chapter of the Colorado Land Surveyors.
After graduating from college, he moved from Las Cruces, New Mexico, to Fruita, Colorado. He worked for Armstrong Engineering and Green Tree Construction. In 1978, he started his own business, W. H. Lizer and Associates, Engineering, Consulting and Land Surveying. He specialized in Waste Water Engineering and was the Engineer for Clifton Sanitation Districts One and Two. He also designed, engineered, and surveyed numerous residential subdivisions, as well as engineered foundations and septic systems.
Coming from a musical family, he was a natural at playing the guitar. He also played the banjo, mandolin, harmonica, piano, and his later love, the fiddle. He attended the Mark O'Connor Fiddle Camp in Tennessee several times and played with the Bar D Wranglers of Durango in their special booth. Since 1986 he played dance music with his wife, Sherrill, at the Grand Junction Senior REC center on Thursday nights. He liked fishing, hunting, gardening, and watching the Denver Broncos. In high school he was a member of the Civil Air Patrol and eventually attained his private pilot's license.
Wayne was preceded in death by his parents, and sisters, Katherine Lizer and Marcia Nowell. He is survived by his wife, Sherrill; sons, Perry Lizer (Cherie) of Pueblo West, and Patrick Lizer of Manchester, New Hampshire, and grandchildren, Sarah, Matthew, and Nicholas Lizer.
Wayne was always considerate and a gentleman. He had a very dry sense of humor, was always the optimist, and was good at working through problems. He was well liked and respected in both the professional and personal communities and will always be missed.
Special thanks to Dr. Peggy Wrich and her nurse, JJ, the St. Mary's Hospitalists, Nurses, CNA and Support staff, and the Palliative Care team. We would also like to thank the HopeWest Care Center teams for their kindness and care during this difficult time.
A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. at Callahan-Edfast Mortuary on Friday, April 26, 2019, with a reception to follow.
Memorial contributions to HopeWest, 3090B N. 12th Street, Grand Junction, CO 81506.